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Conjectures of an Eclectic Christian

According to neuroscientist Dr Kent Kiehl of the University of New Mexico, detailed brain scanning proves that psychopaths lack empathy; their impaired emotional processing should therefore be viewed in much the same way as a lack intellectual ability is viewed – i.e. genetically determined, but also influenced by environmental factors.

As a result of Dr. Kiehl’s pioneering work, the focus is now on how a specific diagnosis, and an early intervention, can be made in children who exhibit ‘callous and unemotional disorder’, an early indicator of psychopathy – and to develop programmes and treatments specifically geared to addressing their condition. As Matthew Taylor, the author of article concludes: ‘In essence, these children have to be painstakingly taught reactions which the rest of us have automatically’. Fascinating.